Years ago, we bought a building lot in Lake Havasu City, Arizona. The city had been formed in 1963. We bought the property in the 1980s. I think I saw the property twice before we sold it a few years later when prices and property taxes rose.

Another purchase was a lot on the Sanpete County Tax Sale in 1985. There were more recreational subdivision lots offered on the sale than there were buyers. We were flipping coins to see who would buy which lot on the sale for the amount of the taxes and the costs of the sale.

That doesn’t happen anymore. There are lots of bargain hunters who show up for the tax sales and they bid the prices up. The bargains are few and far between.

At the moment, I’m considering another purchase of property without having seen the land. I’m not so sure that it’s a good idea. But, it’s intriguing. If the advertising can be believed, this deal is out of this world.

When I say that, I’m speaking literally. The offer is for acreage on the planet Mars. Yes, you heard me right – Mars, the fourth planet from the sun.

I’m thinking that social distancing is probably going to be around for a while and Mars might be just the spot for waiting this COVID-19 thing out. Mars is pretty much in our neighborhood. It’s not like buying real estate on Neptune. The way I figure it, the Moon is just simply too close. Jupiter, as a “gas planet” isn’t really marketable (or able to be landed on for that matter); but, Mars is just right. It’s similar to parts of Utah – red dirt and canals, of some sort.

According to groupon.com, there have already been 25,000 buyers of Mars property. I’m thinking I’d better hurry. The “elevator” is getting ready to leave the “ground floor.”

The original per acre price has been reduced from $35.00 an acre to $15.00 an acre. I could probably afford to buy several acres and have a little Martian ranch up there. Maybe I could start a potato farm like Matt Damon did in that movie ”The Martian.”

Of course, there is that little detail of getting back and forth to Mars. Not to worry. I think I can depend on Elon Musk to take care of that for me. I have read where Musk, the Tesla car maker, is planning on three Starship rockets every day departing for Mars, by 2050.

Like I said, I’m still considering the purchase. I haven’t decided yet for sure whether to pull the trigger on this real estate deal. I usually consult with my wife before buying real estate, but it doesn’t always happen that way.

Some of the disclaimer language on this Martian real estate offer bothers me just a little. “Blah, blah, blah…for entertainment purposes only.” I don’t think I’ve seen that kind of language even on the sale advertisements for pet rocks.

I think I’ll do my due diligence and then decide on whether to buy or not. I’d really like to see a title report. I’d hate to buy and then find out later that there’s an easement for Mars rover vehicles to be running back and forth across my property. I don’t want the dust stirred up at my ranch house.

It would be tough to leave Sanpete though. If living remotely is really the goal, I’ve already got it here. Mars will probably have a “two door Wal-Mart” before we do here in Sanpete. Believe it or not, my buddy Elon Musk’s plan is for a city of one million people on Mars by 2050.

After further review, even though the price is right for Mars real estate, I’m beginning to think that staying in Sanpete may be the right choice for me. I like my “elbow room” and Mars kind of seems crowded already.